By MacNessa, on September 7th, 2010%
I love my 21.5″ iMac with a fervor reminiscent of a religious devotee.
It’s predecessor, my 13″ Macbook, was my first introduction to the modern Mac, and to say that it changed my life, is an understatement. Here suddenly was a computer that I could trust to do the work I gave it, and this opened up a whole new career path for me in graphic design.
In the year preceding getting my first Mac, I think I must have fried at least 3 PC’s. Even though the machines were specced up and revamped and built to take the visual pounding that I needed in order to do simple photo editing using photoshop (at that stage it was the original CS), 3 of them were laid to rest before I finally decided I needed to try a Mac. Previously, I’d just put the thought out of my mind, because of their higher price point, even though deep down I knew it was probably the answer for me.
When I eventually did get that first Mac, which was coincidentally also my first laptop style machine even my hubby became forever converted, and actually uttered the words, “I will never buy another PC again.” Literally meaning that henceforth he was a converted Mac man too.
Which computer do you use?
By MacNessa, on August 13th, 2010%
When it comes to MP3 players, it seems as thought the choice is even less of a no-brainer than the choice for phones – in which there is a huge debate amongst consumers between Blackberry and iPhone.
 If you consider that there really are no MP3 players to rival the iPod range from Apple, then of course the problem comes in, in choosing just which iPod to get?
If you’re an iPhone user, then getting the iPod touch seems a silly idea, unless perhaps you choose to use the iPod touch as a ‘home’ ipod that the whole family can use, or that the kids can each use to play their various array of apps.
In fact suddenly the idea of having one iPod Touch per child suddenly seems like a fabulous idea, unless, as a parent you don’t mind surrendering your phone to the toddler who will no doubt figure out more of it’s intricacies within seconds than you could within years, or at least until the next model is released!
If you’re still undecided, and because of price constraints have decided against the iPod touch, then reading some ipod reviews is a good way of learning about the intricacies of each different model, through testimonials of customers who have already got the model in question.
One important thing to note, about the iPod Nano, is that it now shoots video. That is *always* plus. These days everyone is an on the spot journalist/blogger/twitterer and being able to shoot video on the fly is a feature that should not be discounted in a hurry…
I wonder when the new iPod Touch will be released? I’m sure they’ll want to keep up with their new iPhone 4′s sleek new aluminum look.
By MacNessa, on July 20th, 2010%
I’ve been looking for an offline blog editor for awhile now. So I was excited to try out this app that I saw featured on Mac App Storm.
I write for four blogs, and the constant ‘log in – log out’ was wearing a little thin. Particularly when I want to get out four posts in the morning with my first three cups of coffee.
This is the first time I’ve found a blog editor that truly works offline.
My favourite feature is the live preview that I can see while I’m typing. NICE.
MarsEdit is a product offered by Mac Software developers Red Sweater, and it costs a mere $39.95 (USD). I’m currently on day 1 of the 30 day free trial, so I’ll let you all know how it goes. So far, so good. Very very good.
It downloaded in a couple of seconds, installed just as fast, and because of the familiar Mac based interface I have had ZERO problems figuring out how to add my blogs etc. The fact that it has a handy ‘auto-detect’ feature, and simply asks for my blogs URL, username and password, made it *that* much easier to get started.
The only downside to this product (not for me, but for some) is that it is a Mac only App, but since Apple are making major strides into the PC dominated market here, I’m guessing I’m not the only person who is going to be enjoying this application soon.
It has support for many of the major blogging platforms including WordPress, Tumblr, Blogger, Typepad, Squarespace, Movable Type and dozens more through the Atom publishing protocol.
You can also insert pictures as you compose your post, and it uploads them for you upon hitting publish!
You can easily scan your iPhoto galleries or other folders to find the pictures you want – and it even has support to link up with your flickr account to insert photographs from there.
It may well be the best thing for blogging since sliced bread! If you’re a geek like me and sometimes want to tinker about with the html, then there’s an option for that too.
So if you’re looking for an offline blog editor that lets you do everything offline, and then takes care of the rest for you don’t miss out on this app.
By MacNessa, on July 12th, 2010%
Uncapped internet is not a real reality in South Africa.
Not even with the new so called uncapped internet offerings from the likes of Mweb, Afrihost, Axxess etc are things truly uncapped, since they begin to throttle line speeds at around 60gigs.
So many people are on internet packages which have a cap. The worst of these is 3G which have packages starting form 40mb. That might last me a day, if I’m lucky!
We opted to go with Neotel – as they are the official opposition to the ‘giant conglomerate’ of Telkom, and offer a wireless solution that is covered in the area that we live in. While Neotel do offer an unlimited solution as a package deal with a home phone etc etc, we opted to go with the Data only option – capped at 10gigs for the time being. We do have the option to update to 15gigs if necessary.
But how on earth do we monitor our usage to ensure that our service provider is billing us correctly? We are not disconnected if we exceed our cap, simply billed ‘out of bundle’ for the extra. Now while the out of bundle costs are more expensive, they’re nowhere near the highway robbery of Mweb’s out of bundle 3G data charges – so we’re lucky in that respect. But since we don’t like financial situations that we cannot monitor it became imperative for us to find a solution that allows us to accurately monitor our internet bandwith usuage to compare with our statement at the end of the month.
 I found just that tool in Surplus Meter. So now I’m able to accurately guage my internet usage, and it even goes so far as to show me my average daily usage, and how that is affected by how much I’ve already used for the month. I’m able to pick a start date, select a cap, easily reset if there is an issue – and it works out everything according to what I enter, and my usage.
So now, when I get closer to my internet cap, instead of carrying on blindly, perhaps I’ll consider top fat burners, or at least get off my work butt and go and get some exercise instead!
Best of all? Surplus Meter is absolutely free.
By MacNessa, on July 1st, 2010%
I love it when design and technology meet!
Check out these awesome USB drives!
  
Aren’t they just gorgeous! I’d like to have a set all lined up.
Did you know that these make great gifts? Or put your logo on them and turn them into custom usb drives, wouldn’t that be a great promotional tool?
Why not preload them with a few items of marketing material and your contact details and send them out as gifts to win new clients, or to thank existing clients?
Check out *these* cute USB drive wristbands! Perfect if you’re at college and want to safeguard your notes after the lecture.
By MacNessa, on June 29th, 2010%
I’m not sure how they keep doing it, unless they have access to alien technology, but they have just gone and created another product that appears to be better than the last, but without taking away any of the beauty of the former product.
Take a looksee here…
 The last iPhone, even the first iPhone, was a thing of extreme beauty.
For myself, I had no preference between white or black, they were both equally gorgeous and sleek.
As a Blackberry user myself, SIMPLY because of the ludicrous cost of iPhone packages in this country, I continue to covet the iPhone from afar, until they are offered with reasonable data rates, or I live in another country, which ever comes first. Heh. I’m sure there are some folks who are happy to cash in their social security disability grants to use it on a phone, but I’m not one of them.
With both front and back facing cameras and the ability to talk in real video time (wifi and iPhone OS4 required) it is going to change the way we communicate with one another, and particularly on the ease with which we share our worlds with the cloud. That is, the world wide web.
At this stage I can see myself buying the iPod Touch, to use around the house, both as the house sound system, when it’s docked in a speaker system, for browsing internet and checking email while watching TV (and when of course connected to our home wifi network), and enjoying a range of apps.
However, I’m going to have to get an iPhone sometime, because honestly, as a mac user, I just can’t justify NOT having one, when it’s going to so much easier to sync-and-go with an iPhone than it is with my Blackberry.
Of course, once *I* have one, I know that the other parental unit is going to ‘have to have’ one, and then it’s only a matter of time before our entire household is converted to all apple products and the last remaining PC is gathering dust in a corner somewhere, saved only by it’s ability to run legacy games that we can’t seem to let go of. The old Emperor, Caesar, Pharoah games and things like Age of Empires etc.
Now it simply remains for me to install some floating shelves in the lounge and finally buy that hi-gloss white TV stand that I’ve been coveting before my house finally begins to resemble an Apple store.
By MacNessa, on June 24th, 2010%
 Let’s get one thing straight here, we’re not talking about copying movies, okay, because that would be just plain wrong.
I’m talking about the duplication of a range of DVD’s and CD’s for example, that may have been produced for a business, or company containing presentations, orientations information for new employees, perhaps back ups of documents for smaller business etc. Legitimate CD/DVD replication, is the name of the game.
The point of DVD Duplication is to safeguard data of some kind, and reproduce it on the best possible blank media, to a high standard and using only the best quality discs etc. There is no point in investing money in the cheapest discs, if they’re not going to store that precious information in the first place.
You’re probably also going to need labels and disc covers to go with your items, as a package. Wouldn’t it be nice to find a company that can offer your company the whole deal as a package? Just imagine the time, money and man-power your company will save by outsourcing this initiative to a reputable provider.
By MacNessa, on June 18th, 2010%
I originally started this website as a catch all for cool and awesome things to decorate your home office with. Particularly since I had just gotten my first ever Macbook, and felt like I had to redecorate the entire space where I had just started freelancing, simply to make it look as cool as the Mac. Hence the “Ultimate Mac Office” portion of the title.
So! I made a discovery!
Check out these awesome cable organizer thingys!
 Just imagine how easy it will be to keep your desk tidy and free of cable clutter!
You can check out more awesome geek related products after the jump.
I’m particularly taken with the fact that they only cost 10 euros for a set of six, and you get a choice of ‘bright’ colors and ‘neutral’, but I’d definitely go with the fresh bright selection (pictured left).
As a graphic designer, I have a larger than normal number of peripherals that I use on a daily basis, and I therefor use more than the average number of usb ports for peripherals such as printer, scanner, tablet, keyboard (not a fan of the wireless version that came standard with my iMac) and then of course there’s the usual camera compact flash card reader that needs to go in, the cord that I use to synch my Blackberry (still going to get an iPhone) with, and the list is endless.
Getting some of these awesome cool goodies (and they’re SO CUTE too!) would definitely make me happy because of the resulting organization, but also because of the cool color selection.
Again, you can check out the range of technological accessories here. Please note that this is not a paid endorsement of any kind, I discovered these guys quite by accident, and also sent them a thumbs up from Stumbleupon, because I liked their stuff so much.
 Here’s another shot!
Don’t you just love the brights?
The neutrals are okay for blokes I suppose (or boring Windows users!) I can just seem them in use on a hi-gloss white desk, with a swish new iMac on top, and a few similarly colored accessories as embellishments. Like a hot pink stapler, or some lime green storage boxes.
As an aside, if my site looks a tad odd at the moment, I’ve just upgraded to WordPress 3.0 and I’m not sure that my social bookmarks plugin has been updated accordingly yet, which is why there is a line of dots below instead of the usual share this on facebook/twitter/stumbleupon/digg etc.
However if you’ve enjoyed this post, please do share it by cutting and pasting the url into your preferred service. Thank you!
By MacNessa, on June 18th, 2010%
So Apple announced the all new Mac Mini!
 So here is why it’s the ideal solution for my mom.
- It’s small, unobtrusive, and with her technophobic attitude, and unhealthy dependency on windows (“It’s what I know“) it’s a great non-threatening entry into the ways of the force, back from the dark side.
- With that brushed aluminium finish being added to it now, she no longer has the excuse that it looks cheap, and doesn’t match her monitor.
- It has the lowest price entry point of any Apple computing product available in this country (aside from iPod Touch), and given that she already has a monitor, there’s added incentive to only have to purchase this unit by itself.
- My mother has made a lifelong habit as using me for tech support whenever we go to visit her, as in, “Glad you guys could come for lunch, um honey, could you look at my computer and see why XYZ isn’t working?” literally. In the same breath. Switching to mac will not only make her life easier, but I’ll have to spend less time helping her, after the initial conversion is complete. It’s like becoming a vampire, extremely painful for three days, but once the conversion is complete, you feel like a new person, and what’s more, suddenly your computer is beautiful, and immortal.
So what do you think of the Apple Mac mini  ? Have you considered it? They even have a Snow Leopard Server version for small business, which makes all kinds of sense!
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